Glory stay top after fiery draw with Victory
Perth Glory have clung onto top place on the A-League ladder after holding Melbourne Victory to a 1-1 draw at AAMI Park.
In a top of the table classic, Daniel Georgievski’s second-half goal cancelled out Andy Keogh’s controversial opener that left Victory fuming.
While the draw means Kenny Lowe’s side have gone seven matches without a win, Glory were undoubtedly the happier side with the result.
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Victory strikers Kosta Barbarouses, Besart Berisha and Fahid Ben Khalfallah all troubled the Glory defence in the opening 20 minutes.
A brain fade from goalkeeper Nathan Coe nearly cost Victory, with fit-again defender Matthieu Delpierre on hand to prevent Keogh tapping into an empty net.
But the defining moment arrived on 43 minutes when Keogh netted past Coe and retreating midfielder Mark Milligan.
The Irishman’s goal was a textbook case of a marginal offside – which on first glance looked to be jaw-droppingly obvious.
Keogh’s sharp movement towards goal, combined with the Victory defence shuffling up, meant Keogh received Michael Thwaite’s chipped cross well in the clear.
Replays showed the tightest of tight decisions, but Victory’s players made their minds up from a second showing on the big screen and showed their displeasure.
Kevin Muscat’s side set upon the assistant referee and the crowd threw drink bottles at the officials in ugly scenes.
Referee Kris Griffiths-Jones was in danger of losing control of the match, with Ben Khalfallah booked as protests on and off the field continued as the match re-started.
Fuelling the discontent, Victory were denied a penalty in first-half stoppage time, when Barbarouses’ shot ricocheted into Josh Risdon’s elbow at close range.
The half-time whistle was met with a cacophony of shouting but brought respite to the tension.
After the break, it was on again.
Daniel De Silva and Thwaite joined Mitch Nichols and Dino Djulbic as Glory players in the book in the first ten minutes after the break as Victory surged forward.
On 63 minutes, Victory had their justice when Georgievski curled in a goal worthy of his Chilean doppelganger Alexis Sanchez.
The left-back, on his first start since January, stroked home elegantly around Danny Vukovic at the back post to bring Victory back on terms.
With the 22,525-strong crowd again in full voice, Ben Khalfallah couldn’t find the target twice from shots outside the box and from a point-blank header.
Risdon’s diving header was blocked as Glory sought to repeat their counter-attacking triumph over Victory from earlier in the season.
Another rash tackle from Nichols, this time on Carl Valeri earned him a second yellow card and his marching orders.
Khalfallah earned one last save from Vukovic with 90 seconds remaining but Glory held on for another precious away point.
Meanwhile, two goals in three minutes secured Wellington Phoenix a 2-0 win over Adelaide United, underlining their play-off hopes with seven games remaining.
Both teams struggled with their timing in a scoreless first half, battling strong, gusty northerlies and a slippery surface from earlier heavy rain.
But new signing Joel Griffiths’ scoring instincts kicked in with perfect timing at the Hutt Recreation Ground in front of a 7,819-strong crowd, just as the game looked destined to end without a goal.
The former Newcastle Jets striker scrambled the ball home in the 79th minute, Louis Fenton ending a strong run with well-placed cross for Griffiths to bundle past Adelaide keeper Eugene Galekovic.
Three minutes later, Nathan Burns doubled the lead with a free header at the far post from Roly Bonevacia’s free kick, sealing Wellington’s spot in a congested top-five.